Death toll from coronavirus jumps to 124 in Iran

The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus has climbed to 124, the country's Health Ministry announced on Thursday.

As many as 17 more people died of the COVID-19 disease as 1,234 new cases were reported across the country in the last 24 hours, spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour told a news conference in the capital Tehran.

The latest figure brought the total number of infections to 4,747, said Jahanpour.

Most of the new cases, he added, were detected in Tehran, Qom, Gilan, Isfahan, Alborz, Markazi and Qazvin provinces.

Jahanpour said 913 infected patients were successfully treated and discharged from hospitals across Iran, whereas 15,981 were in hospitals with their condition said to be stable.

Besides Italy and South Korea, Iran is the worst-affected country since the outbreak of the disease in China last December.

As part of its efforts to contain the virus, Tehran has taken several measures, including the closure of all schools and institutes of higher education, calling off sports events nationwide, as well as banning government officials from leaving the country.

The global death toll has crossed 3,300, with more than 97,000 confirmed cases in 87 countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesushas has called on governments to take the virus seriously as "we can only save lives together."